


Keelah se'Lai

by Casey_Wolfe



Series: Keelah se'Lai [1]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Community: masseffectkink, Cultural Differences, Friendship, Homophobia (mentioned), M/M, ME2 AU, Rare Pairings, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-01
Updated: 2015-07-01
Packaged: 2018-04-07 02:46:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4246512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Casey_Wolfe/pseuds/Casey_Wolfe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kal'Reegar never thought to meet the famed Commander Shepard, let alone that the man could be interested in someone like him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Keelah se'Lai

**Author's Note:**

> Filling my own prompt for the Mass Effect Kink Meme.  Though I’d really like to see someone else tackle it as I’m not sure I did it justice.  I just had a hankering to write it while watching hubby play ME tonight.

There was no way to describe the feeling that slammed into his chest the first time he saw Commander Shepard.  The man was a legend- saving the Citadel, the Council, becoming the first Human Spectre.  He was also a friend to Tali’Zorah and as such Kal had been able to ask questions about him.

Not that he had thought it mattered much at the time, outside of sating his own curiosity.  But then he never thought to actually meet the Human in person.

Shepard was an imposing figure in his black N7 armor.  His jawline was sharp, his deep blue eyes piercing, some soot on his cheek that blended into the scruff on his face.  Kal hadn’t seen many Humans over the years but he was willing to bet that Shepard was an excellent example of the species.

Clearing his throat, Kal focused on the task at hand- the giant Colossus and numerous Geth raining fire down on them for example.  “Kal’Reegar,” he managed to introduce, “Migrant Fleet Marines. Still have no idea why you’re here, but now’s not the time to be picky.”  A blast from the Colossus impacted the wall he was hiding behind, proving his point as the concussion rippled through them.

“Tali’s inside over there.”  Shepard chanced looking over top the barrier.  Kal couldn’t help but smirk as he added, “It’s hard getting through a door when someone’s shooting rockets at you.”  His heart skipped as Shepard smirked at him, clearly amused- Kal would blame it on the meds.

Shepard’s eyes went to Kal’s leg, apparently noting the hole clean through it.  “How bad is your suit damage?” he inquired, his voice a vibrant tenor now that it wasn’t filtered through the radio.

“Combat seals are clamped down to isolate contamination and I’m swimming in antibiotics.”  He scoffed.  “Geth might get me but I’m not gonna die from an infection in the middle of a battle.  That’s just insulting.”

That time Shepard _did_ laugh, a rich sound that had Kal grinning again.  “Ooh-rah,” he heard the Commander murmur.  It wasn’t a phrase Kal was familiar with but he thought he understood the general idea.  “We need to get around one of the sides, get close enough to put down heavy fire before the Colossus can repair itself.”

Kal nodded in agreement- it had been their plan before, well, before his whole squad had been killed.  “I’m not movin’ so well,” he admitted, “But I can still pull a trigger.  I'll cover you from here, draw their fire.”

Shepard nodded.  “Okay, just don’t be reckless.”  He looked over at the crewmates he’d brought with him, a Turian and a Krogan of all things.  “Garrus, hold a sniping position.  Grunt, we’ll flank along the right side, keep to the high ground.”

“Copy that,” the Turian replied, practically purring as his sniper rifle folded out into position.

“Stay sharp Shepard,” Kal offered, “Keelah se’lai.”

* * *

Shepard was checking his messages when he found one from Kal’Reegar.  He had asked Tali about how the other Quarian was doing since his injury on Haestrom, glad to hear he had pulled through.  It never ceased to amaze him how sensitive Quarian immune systems were.

Apparently Tali must have mentioned his inquiry as Kal’s message started out with, “ _Heard you were asking about me.”_ The rest of the email was rather casual, thanking him again for the help before offering, “ _Feel free to message anytime.  Keelah se’lai, Kal’Reegar vas Rayya.”_

It was innocent enough but then Tali’s words came to mind.  Somehow one evening in Engineering as they were talking, the conversation had turned to Kal.  Tali had giggled, the sound distorted a little by her mask.

“ _What?” Shepard asked._

“ _That’s the third time you’ve brought Kal up just tonight Shepard.”_

“ _No it isn’t.”_

“ _Oh, but it is.”  Tali had a cheeky tone to her voice, a sense of knowing.  “Believe me when I say Kal wouldn’t object to the attention, although the rest of our people might.”_

When questioned further, Tali had confided that Kal was gay.  Naturally Shepard hadn’t seen the issue with that, until Tali also confessed how it was looked down upon in the Flotilla.  The explanation made sense of course- with their numbers dwindling, the Quarians needed to look towards continuing their species and same-sex couples weren’t exactly keeping the population stable.  However _making sense_ wasn’t the same thing as being right.

Shepard wasn’t about to try and say he liked Kal in that way- frankly they didn’t know each other well enough for that- but it didn't mean they couldn't at least be friends. With that in mind, Shepard smiled softly to himself, typing out a quick reply before sending it off.

* * *

Kal refused to believe that Tali would endanger the Fleet.  He was one of the first to go to the Admirals and tell them as _politely_ as he could what he thought of their foolish notions.  Frankly he figured it went in one ear and out the other.

When Shepard arrived with Tali, Kal found he had mixed feelings on the Human’s presence.  He knew full well that Shepard would be a good person to have in Tali’s corner, speaking for her since the Admirals decided to declare her _vas Normandy_ as though it were supposed to be some sort of insult.  On the other hand though, that meant Kal would have to speak with him again and even though they had been communicating back and forth for weeks now, that didn’t stop him from being nervous.

He had purposefully put himself along their path to the _Aleri,_ noting the moment he was spotted by them both.  “Kal’Reegar,” Tali greeted.

“Tali.  Shepard.”  He was smiling behind his mask, despite the situation.

“Kal,” Shepard replied warmly, “I didn’t think we’d see you here.”

“Well,” he mused, “The _Rayya is_ my home Commander.”

“Ah, point well taken.  Guess I wasn’t thinking straight what with all this…”  He drifted off, looking down at Tali.

“About that.  I’m coming with you to the _Aleri_.”

“Kal-”

He cut off Tali’s protest.  “I figure since it was my suggestion to get you on board, I could at least tag along and watch your six.”  He looked at Shepard, adding, “Both of you.”

“Alright,” Shepard conceded.  “Lets go.”

* * *

“Tali’s done more for this Fleet than you assholes ever will,” Kal growled out.  “You’re pissing on everything I fought for!  Everything Tali fought for!”

They had taken back the _Aleri_ , had destroyed all the Geth on board, and Tali’s record spoke for itself.  They weren’t about to use the evidence they had found implicating Rael, and neither he nor Shepard were allowing the railroading against Tali to continue.

“So if you exile her,” Kal concluded, “you might as well do the same to me.”

“Me too!” Veetor added, the young Quarian that Tali and Shepard had saved from Collectors having also jumped to her defense.  Many others in the chamber were showing their own outrage.

Shepard’s lips quirked, looking over at Kal with what could only be described as warmth.  Kal smiled back, even if the Human couldn’t see it.

* * *

Charges dropped and preparing to depart, Shepard trailed behind with Kal.  “So,” he offered the Quarian once they’d reached the airlock, “care to come along?”

Kal jerked back in surprise.  “What?”

Shepard smiled, holding back the laugh.  “We need good soldiers like you Kal.  Come with us.”

To the Quarian’s credit, he only thought about it for less than a minute before answering with a smile in his voice, “I’d be honored to join your crew Commander.”

“Welcome to the Normandy.”  He ignored Kal’s outstretched hand, instead pulling the Quarian into a half hug, patting him roughly on the back as he murmured, “Good to have you with us.”

Kal blushed beneath his mask, grateful Shepard couldn’t see it.  He had already been tempted to simply go with him and Tali on Haestrom.  There was no way he was making the same mistake twice.

* * *

Because of the prejudice within the Fleet, Kal had always felt alone.  It was only made worse by this _crush_ he had on a Human of all things.  He figured it was pointless anyway- surely the famous Commander Shepard had plenty of potential suitors, so why choose a Quarian?

Still, his new place aboard the _Normandy_ felt rather like a real home.  Despite being surrounded by species of every kind, he was comfortable.  He fell into a routine, made new friends, and felt like he was truly contributing.  In a way it was just like the Migrant Fleet, everyone having a job to make it all run smoothly.

The best part of his day though was certainly whenever he saw Shepard.  Kal had figured the Commander would be far too busy to spend as much time as he did with his crew, but it seemed as though at least once a cycle the man sought him out.  Whether that was to simply talk or grab a quick meal or even to spar, it didn’t much matter to Kal.  Being in Shepard’s presence was more than enough for him.

“Have I told you I really like your suit?” Shepard asked as they sat in the mess.

It was late, much later than the Commander typically ate and everyone else was already in bed or running the skeleton crew.  It had been made to seem like dumb luck that Kal was still up as well but in truth he had been waiting for the Commander to return from his mission.

“You do?”  Kal didn’t bother hiding his surprise.  “Most people seem to find fault in them.”

“I don’t see why.  They’re beautiful.”  Shepard took another bite of his dinner, something he’d called pizza.  “And yours is really nice.  I’m partial to blue myself but red is good for you.”  He smirked as he explained, “Matches your fiery personality.”

Kal laughed, his retort slipping from his mouth before he could stop it.  “I swear Shepard, sometimes I don’t know if you’re flirting with me or just screwing around.”

“Oh, I’m totally flirting with you.”

Kal froze, eyes widening.  “You…  You are?”  Shepard nodded.  “But I’m… I’m a Quarian.”

“So?”

“You’re _Commander Shepard_.”

“So I’ve heard.”  The corner of his mouth was turned up in a smirk, endearing in a way it really shouldn’t have been.

“You don’t even know what I look like.”

“Why should that matter?”  Shepard looked honestly perplexed.  “I like you for who you are Kal, not what you look like...  I already think you’re beautiful.”

Not for the first time Kal was thankful Shepard couldn’t see him blushing, but from the smile on the man's face he figured he knew all the same.  “You Humans are so hard to understand sometimes,” he muttered.

“I don’t hear a ‘not interested’ in there.”

“No,” he answered.  “You didn’t.”

He didn’t say another word.  Shepard’s sly grin as they continued to eat said he didn’t have to.

* * *

“Shepard.”  Looking up from his datapad, he found Kal standing in the door of his quarters.  “I’m not disturbing you am I?”

“Not at all.  Come on in.”  He motioned to the space next to him on the couch, dropping the pad onto the coffee table.  “I was just looking over some reports.  Nothing that can’t wait.”  He turned sideways on the couch, tucking a leg underneath of him as he gazed at Kal.

“This probably isn’t the best time,” the Quarian admitted, “but with everything that’s going to be happening here, I…  I don’t want to regret never getting this chance.”

Shepard could guess where the conversation was headed.  They had been dating for a little while.  Well, as best one could _date_ while trying to carry out such an important mission.  In that time they had talked about how intimacy worked between Quarians, about the steps they would need to take, the _extra_ steps because Shepard was Human.

“Kal, we don’t have to-”

“I know.  I want to.”  Kal’s hand cupped his cheek, gazing at him intently behind his visor.

Shepard understood, he really did.  They were talking about going through the Omega 4 Relay, a veritable suicide mission.  But it could possibly be the only way to stop the Collectors.  Even if they succeeded, it was likely a one way trip.

Kal’s fingers slid down along Shepard’s jaw.  “I want you to see my face,” he continued.

“Will it be safe?” was all he needed to know, taking Kal’s hand.

The Quarian nodded.  “I've been taking a round of antibiotics and Dr. Chakwas has administered other medications recommended by Dr. Solus.”

“Okay,” Shepard breathed, unable to argue against it.  As long as Kal would be alright and it was something he wanted to do…

Kal released his hand, reaching up for his mask.  He unlatched it, a soft rush of air being let out as it decompressed.  As he pulled the visor away and pushed down the hood, Shepard could only smile.

“Beautiful,” Shepard murmured, reaching up to cup Kal’s bare cheek.  “Didn’t I always tell you that?”

Kal let out a light laugh, for once undistorted.  “Yeah, you did.”

Their lips met in a gentle kiss and Kal forgot all about Reapers, Collectors, and Geth.  All that mattered was him and Shepard, his chosen bonded.

/End

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on [Tumblr](http://thedenofcaseywolfe.tumblr.com/).


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